Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim
Pantami, has said that the Television White Space (TVWS) framework
being developed by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), under
the ministry’s supervision, will enhance the delivery of the digital
economy agenda of the Federal Government.
The
Minister stated this during the Industry Stakeholder Forum on the
Guidelines on the use of TVWS in Nigeria, organised by the Commission at
its Head Office in Abuja on Tuesday (17/03/2020).
The
programme was attended by several stakeholders, including the
representatives of telecoms companies, the Association of
Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), officials from the
Ministries of Communications and Digital Economy, and Information and
Culture, as well as collaborating agencies in both Ministries. The
Chairman of NCC Board of Commissioners, Prof. Adeolu Akande also led his
colleagues on the Board to the forum which was attended by many other
professionals from all walks of life, who gathered to make necessary
inputs towards finalising the draft TVWS Guidelines.
The
TVWS is the unused broadcasting spectrum which can be deployed to
provide affordable broadband services to people at the grassroots.
Addressing
the audience at the forum, Pantami said the TVWS Guidelines is in sync
with the objective of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy
(NDEPS) unveiled by President Muhammadu Buhari in November last year.
The
Minister noted that TVWS issue came up “as a result of a resolution by
the National Frequency Management Council (NFMC) in which NCC and
National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) were urged to work together by
setting up an inter-agency committee that will ensure the deployment and
usage of the spectrum for TVWS.”
Dr. Pantami
stated that TVWS is domiciled with NBC and can be used in bringing
affordable broadband services to unserved and under-served areas and
that it is part of the mandate of NCC to ensure universal access to
telecoms services.
“It is because of this that
NFMC urged both to work together for the effective utilisation of TVWS,
which also supports the expanded mandate of the Ministry towards
advancing government’s vision of promoting digital economy. In fact, the
framework directly addresses two of the eight pillars of NDEPS, which
are pillar one and three focusing on developmental regulations, and
solid infrastructure, which has broadband access as a central
component,” he said.
Pantami commended the
efforts of NCC and NBC for complying with the rule-making process by
organising the stakeholder forum to take inputs before finalising work
on the TVWS regulations.
The Minister, however,
charged the regulator “not to go to sleep” in constantly developing
subsidiary regulations as may be necessary, in view of the fast-paced
advancement in the global ICT industry.
Prof.
Adeolu Akande, Chairman, Board of Commissioners, who commended the
Honourable Minister for his support, said the Board of NCC will continue
to provide necessary policy directions to the Commission for effective
regulations of the telecoms industry.
He stated
further that countries such as the United States of America, Singapore,
United Kingdom, Canada, Kenya, Namibia and South Africa, have made
significant progress towards the optimisation, utilisation and
regulation of TVWS, and Nigeria will do so too. He promised that the
Board will support the NCC in ensuring that Nigeria is counted on the
list of such countries.
Earlier, Prof. Umar
Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of
NCC, told the stakeholders that the forum was organised specifically to
discuss the use of TVWS at finalising the draft Guidelines on the
deployment of this technology, in line with the Commission’s commitment
towards bridging the digital divide between different strata and sectors
of the society.
“A
draft of the Regulatory Framework has been concluded and as usual, we
have invited you all to this meeting today to present what has been a
result of a whole year of hard work, collaboration and consultations, to
you for your comments and feedback on the draft document. This will
lead to its eventual finalisation and operationalisation,” the EVC said